A Better Life for Delhi’s Dogs

Individuals and organizations are working hard to provide a better to life for Delhi’s thousands of stray dogs, animals that many regard as a menace, but an increasing number see as potential pets.

Residents of Vasant Vihar in southwest Delhi might have spotted Sarita Paswan going about her rounds. For over a decade, she has been feeding street dogs in the neighborhood twice a day, every day.

She takes bowls and a bucket of food to give the dogs in their little pockets of the colony — behind guard boxes, inside the local club grounds, next to rows of parked cars. As she approaches Mohindra Taxi Stand next to D-block market, a portly gentleman calls out to Ramu, Kalu and Laliya, whose tails wag as he encourages them to eat their dinner.

Back at the home of her employer, Neelam Vaderah, Ms. Paswan reports on the dogs and their welfare. Ms. Vaderah has been a relentless champion of the cause of “desi dogs” for years. She has adopted seven that live inside her house and another 45 outside that she feeds and takes for regular medical checkups. The guards are the best source of information, she says, because they keep track of all the strays and tell her when something goes wrong. Often, people steal the winter coats she puts on the dogs, she says, adding that the only dogs that retain them are the ones sleeping under the watchful eye of the guards.

Ms. Vaderah, Ms. Devi, and the assortment of guards in Vasant Vihar are part of a larger network of people who constitute the “anti anti-desi dog brigade.” Stray dogs have long been a menace in Indian society. A 2009 Municipal Corporation of Delhi report put the number of stray dogs in the capital at over 260,000. Many resident welfare associations have complained about packs of dogs harassing and even attacking passersby, with some incidents of fatalities. According the World Health Organization, India has an estimated 20,000 cases of rabies deaths each year, mostly children who have come into contact with infected dogs.

But people like Ms. Vaderah, who spend their time and resources feeding these animals, believe that human interaction makes the dogs less aggressive, and easier to take in for sterilization. That thought is echoed by animal shelters in the city, where vets encourage residents to keep a watchful eye on any stray dogs that might be living on their streets.

Friendicoes is a clinic tucked away under the Jangpura flyover in south Delhi. Around 8-10 dogs are brought in daily following accidents, maggot wounds and also for regular checkups. Many are brought in by good Samaritans, while the Friendicoes van also picks up animals when called.

The shelter behind the clinic houses desi dogs, cats, monkeys, and even the occasional donkey. Many of these animals are seriously wounded with little hope of ever getting adopted. Some have been hit by big cars, only to be brought in by a poor rickshaw driver who can scarcely afford to pay for medical treatment. Others, older dogs of various pedigrees, have been abandoned because they got too old and families didn’t want pay for their medical treatment or take care of them.

Others are abandoned police dogs. Constable Ramkumar of the Delhi Police Dog Squad says individual dog squads could offer some help if they wanted, but there are no set guidelines. Geeta Seshamani, vice president of Friendicoes, feels it is much better for these dogs to be given to an animal shelter where they are taken care of instead of being auctioned off. New owners often work them as guard dogs, even in their old age, she says. The Friendicoes staff wants to give them a retirement befitting their service to the country.

Stray dogs are gaining acceptability as house pets. I found my own dog, Ally, abandoned in the grounds of St. Stephens College over a decade ago. She has since grown up to be a South Delhi memsahib. Some people were shocked that I had adopted her and not bought a pedigree from a breeder, but today there is a small, but palpable change.

Social media is filled with calls for adoptions. Premlata Chaudhary, who runs an animal clinic in Anand Niketan, feels the younger generation in India is becoming more open to taking in street dogs. She has also arranged over 900 adoptions of desi dogs overseas in countries like Canada, the U.K., Holland, Germany and Australia. She has to apply for a permit before sending the dogs to the country of adoption. Airlifting a puppy to Canada can cost up to $700, she says. While there is no quarantine period in Canada or in most European countries, a dog’s papers need to be in order. Places like Australia, New Zealand and Singapore are stricter, with a one-month quarantine period only after the animal has stayed in a non-rabies country for six months.

A chance meeting with a Canadian lady, Barbara Gard, who wanted to take her desi dog home, led to the idea of encouraging desi dog adoptions abroad. Ms. Chaudhary’s website “Adopt a Desi Dog” has helped not just puppies, but older dogs and even accident victims with three legs find loving homes. She keeps the dogs with her when they arrive in Canada, and only hands them over the adoptive parents if she feels their personality matches the dogs. New owners also have to attend training school to understand how to deal with the demanding personalities of desi dogs.

Ms. Chaudhary also set up a Facebook group called “Desi Furries Worldwide,” through which people can update about their desi dog adventures. Yes, that could be a Delhi street dog you just saw being taken for a walk in Vancouver or Berlin. If only that happened a little more in Delhi itself.

Mahima Kaul is a dog owner and freelance writer focusing on digital freedom, development and the impact of technology on society. You can follow her on Twitter @misskaul.

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